News from Uniting Church SA
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Tuesday 8 July 2025
Called as Moderator: Who is next?
Nominations are now being sought for our next Moderator. An election will be held at our June 2026 Synod meeting, and the new Moderator will take up the role at the 2028 Synod meeting.
The Moderator’s role is one of pastoral and spiritual leadership of the Synod. The focus of the role is to promote the Synod’s vision and mission for the future of the Church; to listen to, guide, and care for all the members and ministers of the UCASA; and to represent the Church in the wider community and the ecumenical and political landscape of SA.
Nominations close on 31 October 2025. Nominations must come through the presbyteries. Nominations can be made by individuals or churches (with a nominator and seconder) and then be sent to the presbytery. An office bearer of the presbytery must also sign the nomination form before sending it to the Moderator Nominating Committee. The Moderator Nominating Committee may discern further people to nominate.
Note: Please do not contact the person being nominated! This is the role of the Moderator Nominating Committee.
For further information, a role and person specification and nomination form, please click HERE. The Moderator Nominating Committee can be contacted by emailing Sue Page (Convenor) assocgensec@sa.uca.org.au.
Celebrating NAIDOC Week
NAIDOC Week 2025 (6 to 13 July) marks 50 years of honouring Indigenous voices, culture and resilience. The Uniting Church, together with the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress (UAICC), celebrates this milestone and the enduring strength of First Nations peoples.
NAIDOC Week has grown into an annual event of hope, truth-telling and a powerful declaration that First Nations peoples are leading and dreaming a future where their communities thrive.
This year’s theme, “The Next Generation: Strength, Vision & Legacy”, celebrates emerging leaders, ancient wisdom and the communities that support and inspire the next generation. It is a call to uplift those who will preserve and carry forward their rich culture.
Click on the link below to learn more about NAIDOC Week and find out what celebrations are happening near you.
Join the Red Dove Café team at the Royal Adelaide Show!
Only 7 weeks to go until the Royal Adelaide Show and the return of the much-loved Red Dove Café! It’s the perfect opportunity to volunteer with family or friends and be part of something special.
If you serve just one shift at the café, you’ll also:
- receive free entry into the Show on the day you volunteer
- enjoy a delicious free meal
- still have plenty of time to explore all the fun and excitement the Royal Adelaide Show has to offer.
3 exciting opportunities
This year there are three exciting ways you can be part of the fun and contribute:
- Cooking prep pre-show (Tue 19 to Thu 28 August)
- Volunteering at the café during the show (Fri 30 August to Sun 7 September)
- Combine a shift with a day of missional reflection (Wed 3 to Sun 7 September)
They’re all fun, fulfilling, and memorable ways to give back. We can’t wait to see you there!
Thank you – $7,116 raised; countless lives touched.
UnitingCare SA is incredibly grateful for the generous support of our community.
Thanks to you, we raised $7,116 in just six weeks leading up to the end of the financial year! These funds will go directly to UnitingCare SA Relief Centres, helping support people in need across our community.
Your generosity makes a real difference. Thank you for standing with us.
With heartfelt gratitude,
The UnitingCare SA Team
Another Uniting Foundation Grant success story Balaklava Uniting Church
During the 2024 grant round, Balaklava Uniting Church was awarded a grant of $20,000 for an outside play area, thanks to the support of UC Invest.
In February 2025 the community rallied together – levelling and pegging the site, excavating a lawn area followed by three pours of concrete before fencing, lawn and a basketball ring were added. A special pizza tea was held as the sprinklers went on to give thanks to God for the vision and work achieved! The fenced area caters for younger children while the older children enjoy the basketball area. A job well done, which could not have been achieved without 300 hours of labour (in-kind donation) from local farmers!
To apply for a Uniting Foundation grant, go to the website for the eligibility criteria and application forms. For further information, contact Alice Hammer on (08)8236 4206 or ahammer@sa.uca.org.au. Applications close 5 pm, 31 July 2025.
VIDEO: Frontier Services Planting hope in Oodnadatta
“This is where it all began for me … literally in this shed” – Adelaide Hills legend Peter Cranwell, of Blackwood Uniting Church, reflects on working with Frontier Services and locals to help fix a shed in Oodnadatta which had been destroyed in a cyclone.
Three years later, and Oodnadatta has a new church. But it’s not just a church building, but a community facility, and, if need be, a place of refuge – a product of people working from their hearts to the advantage of everyone.
Latest AED update
Synod has now emailed AED ordering and purchasing information to all eligible church locations. The emails have been sent to key church/responsible officers currently listed with the Synod (Chair, Secretary and Treasurer).
Orders must be submitted using the online order form link contained in the email. If you're responsible for more than one eligible location, you'll need to a submit separate orders. We encourage you to coordinate at a council level to make sure that only one order is placed for each location.
All orders must be received by 31 July 2025, but we encourage congregations to submit their orders as soon as possible.
An AED Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document is also included in the email. Please read this before contacting the Synod directly with any questions.
Sally Stamp
Thanks are extended to Church Fellowships, businesses, and individuals who continue to support the UCA Stamp Group by saving and donating stamps. Numerous stamp collections that are no longer needed have been donated and are gratefully received. The UCA Stamp Group offers Australian and overseas stamps for purchase at the Church Office, 212 Pirie Street, Adelaide, on Monday mornings from 9:30am to 12 noon. Collection from the metro area can be arranged if required.
For further information, please contact: Maxine Haines – Convenor
Email: jimmax.haines@bigpond.com. Mobile: 0427 972 417
Australian of the Year Awards 2026
Nominations for the prestigious Australian of the Year Awards 2026 are now officially open!
This annual awards program is a wonderful opportunity to recognise and celebrate the outstanding contributions that individuals in our community make. Whether it’s through their achievements, commitment to a cause, or tireless work to improve the lives of others, these everyday heroes deserve our recognition and gratitude.
To nominate someone from your community, please visit our website: Australian of the Year Awards 2026. The process is simple, and the impact can be profound. Remember, anyone can make a nomination, and anyone can be nominated.
Let’s come together to honour those who inspire us, challenge us, and make our nation a better place.
Events
2025 Grants Q&A session – Tonight and Thursday afternoon!
The Uniting Foundation invites all congregations interested in applying for a 2025 grant to join an online Zoom Q&A session. The sessions will be held on Tuesday, 8 July 2025 at 7.30 pm or Thursday, 10 July at 1.30 pm, each lasting one hour. Hosted by Leesa Story, Chairperson of the Uniting Foundation, these sessions offer an opportunity to ask questions and learn more.
For more information, please contact Alice Hammer via email at ahammer@sa.uca.org.au.
Awaken Adelaide Special Lecture – Thursday July 24
An opportunity to hear from international guest speaker Professor Namsoon Kang, Professor of Theology and Religion at Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University, as she explores:
“Practising Neighbour-Love as Just Hospitality: Toward Cosmopolitan Leadership in a Multicultural World”.
Dr Kang is a globally recognised theologian and justice advocate whose work bridges theology, ethics, postcolonialism, and intercultural leadership. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to engage with her transformative insights.
When: Thursday, 24 July 2025, 5:30 – 8 pm
Where: Yarthu-Apinthi, 312 Sir Donald Bradman Dr, Brooklyn Park SA
Renew: Synod Resourcing Event 2025 – October 17 and 18
Registration will be opening later this week for the Renew Synod Resourcing event – a dynamic event to help you refresh, reimagine and reignite the life of your church. Keep an eye on your email for registration details.
We’re excited to have the Mission, Growth and Innovation Team from the Synod of NSW & ACT joining us as keynote speakers and leading workshops, in conjunction with our own wonderful Ministry Resourcing Team.
Inspiring keynote presentations will include:
- Rewilding the church: A Blended Ecology Approach to Renewal – Rev Glen Spencer
- Growing Edges: Signs of Hope for the Uniting Church in Australia – Rev Dr Karina Kerminski
- Green Shoots in Dry Ground: Missional Renewal through Church Planting – Rev Dr Graham Hill
Together we’ll explore Spirit-led renewal – with practical workshops and honest conversations that speak to the heart of ministry in today’s world. You’ll encounter fresh ideas, build deeper connections, and return home encouraged and better equipped for your work in the church and the world.
Renew is for anyone involved in the life of the church – ministers, ministry teams, preachers, elders, leaders, and members of city, regional and rural congregations – there’ll be something for everyone and everyone is welcome!
Dates:
- Friday October 17, 2025, 6.30 pm – 9.00 pm
- Saturday October 18, 2025, 9.00 am – 4.30 pm
Location:
Adelaide West Uniting Church and Yarthu-Apinthi,
312 Sir Donald Bradman Drive, Brooklyn Park SA 5032
Winter Warmers – Journalling with Paint and Poetry
Registrations are now open for the Winter Warmers – Journalling with Paint and Poetry retreat, happening Saturday 19 July 2025 from 10am to 4pm at The Corner UC. Hosted by the Centre for Music, Liturgy and the Arts (CMLA), this creative day offers both full-day and half-day options and is open to all experience levels. It’s a chance to slow down and explore the connections between life, creativity and spirituality through visual art and writing. The retreat will be facilitated by Karan Hudson and Paul Turley. For more information and to register, visit www.cmla.org.au
Under Construction @CityView: Good Samaritan
Join with the CityView Uniting community to reflect on the story of the Samaritan man who cares for the guy attacked in the street (often called the Good Samaritan). We'll explore this story using Lego in a range of ways.
Under Construction @CityView is an event for kids (of all ages) and families (parents, grandparents and caregivers) to explore life and faith using Lego as our core media. We are a small community offering this ministry because we love Lego, exploring faith and being together.
We recognise that each child comes to such a time in different ways and, while Lego is at our core, the program seeks to cater for diversity. UCity is an accessible space.
When: 3 pm, Sunday 20 July
Where: UCity, 43 Franklin Street. All welcome.
Book Launch Spicer Cottages Trust 125 Years History
The Spicer Cottages Trust 125 Years History will be launched at 2 pm on Sunday 20 July 2025 at Spicer Uniting Church, 44a Fourth Ave, St Peters.
Guests are welcome to register to hear about the amazing life of Edward Spicer, his pioneering exploits and his philanthropy, especially in the establishment of the Spicer Cottages Trust.
Amplify Conference
Amplify is Australia’s largest children, youth, and family ministry conference and will be held on Saturday 2 August 2025 across four hubs in South Australia: Brooklyn Park, Salisbury, Rostrevor, and Port Lincoln. The event features exclusively recorded, inspiring messages from keynote speakers with expertise in their fields, along with a wide range of quality electives covering children, youth, and family ministry, leadership, culture, faith communities and more.
Speakers include Tery Williams (opening plenary session), Suzie and Peter Botross (youth ministry) and Ainsley Freeman (children and families). More information is available at Hubs | Amplify Conference.
News highlights from the Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia this week include:
Recent news
Called as Moderator: Who is next?
Renew: Synod Resourcing Event 2025 – October 17 and 18
Copyright reminders
AED purchasing update
Save the date – Resourcing Day!
Open now – 2025 Uniting Foundation grants
Every Generation Onkaparinga Awards
Australian of the Year Awards 2026
Join the Red Dove Café team at the Royal Adelaide Show!
Volunteers needed – Pilgrim Uniting Church
Volunteers needed – The Corner Uniting Church Op Shop
Volunteers needed – UnitingCare Glenelg
Clinical Pastoral Education at St Andrew’s Hospital
Frontier Services – Planting hope in Oodnadatta
Western Link Uniting Church – 20th Anniversary
Help create new possibilities for people facing poverty
Reflection of the week
Freedom Results from Action
Freedom is not a state; it is an act. It is not some enchanted garden perched high on a distant plateau where we can finally sit down and rest. Freedom is the continuous action we all must take, and each generation must do its part to create an even more fair, more just society.
John Lewis, Across That Bridge
When Jesus comes to the temple, he drives out those who are selling and buying, and he overturns the tables of the money changers. He says, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations?’ but you have made it a den of robbers”.
Father Richard Rohr
Prayer points
This NAIDOC Week, we reflect on the past and look to a future filled with possibility for First Nations Peoples. We pray that Christ will continue to empower us to walk together on the journey of truth, justice and healing across this land we now call Australia.
We pray for the families of all those tragically killed by flooding in Texas, southern India and Bangladesh and those who continue to suffer through the deadly heatwave in Europe. May our governments show leadership and be forward-thinking in dealing with the urgent and devastating impacts of climate change.
We continue to pray for peace, respect and compassion in the midst of violence and suffering. We pray for leaders to choose dialogue over destruction, and for wisdom, restraint, and compassion to guide every decision.
Resources to help people worship and pray together as a gathered community or at home. These resources are generously prepared by Rev Cheryl Wilson.
Upcoming events
July
19 – Christmas in July Markets
19 – Winter Warmers – Journalling with paint and poetry
20 – Live Arts at Newland – Victor Harbour
20 – Book Launch of Spicer Cottages Trust 125 Years
20 – Under Construction @CityView: Good Samaritan
24 – Awaken Adelaide Special Lecture
31 – Uniting Foundation Grants close
August
2 – 2025 Bethany Hall SALA Art Exhibition
2 – The Buddhist Monk who Loves Jesus
2 – Amplify Conference
8 – Oodnadatta Congress Celebration Weekend
17 – KickStart for Kids Fundraising Concert
23 – Community Connections – Weaving Lives Together
Positions and placements
Activity Facilitator – Beyond Limits Outdoor Education – Open now
Centre Manager – Tarooki, Robe – Closes 14 July
Administration Officer, Mission Resourcing – Closes 18 July
Head Cook, Nunyara – Belair – Closes 28 July
Centre Manager, Adare – Victor Harbor – Closes 28 July
UC eNews is the weekly email newsletter of the Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of South Australia. If you’d like to include content in UC eNews or on the Synod of South Australia website, please submit it by COB Mondays.
